Improvement in paper-damping machines



. 4Sheets-8heet 1. S. D'. TUCKER... Paper-Damping Machine;

Patented May 13,1879.

Stephen: D. Tucker- N. PETERS. PNOTO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON, D c.

' 4 Sheets-Sheet2. SLR-TUCKER.

Paper-Dampipg Machine. No. 215,414. Patented May 13, 187.9; Y

1 nven'bor- Slejzken D By N-FETERS. PHOTO-UTHOGRAFHER. Wi-SHlNGTON. D,C.

- 4 Sheets8heet 3. S. D. TUCKER-r Paper-DampingMachine. No. 215,414.Patented May 13, 1-879 Witn sses h v I I 8Z' eflhen D. 7225763 TLFEERS,PHOTD-LITHOGRAPHBR, WASHINGTON D. C.

4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

S. D. TUCKER.

Paper-Damping Machine. No. 215,414. Patented May 13, 1879.

Inventor- .PEI'ERS. PHOTO-LYTHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D. C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

STEPHEND. TUCKER, OF NEW YORK, NY.

IMPROVEMENT IN PAPER-DAM PING MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 215,414, dated May 13,1879; application filed March 12, 1878.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, STEPHEN D. TUCKER, of the city, county, and State ofNew York, have invented an Improvement in Damping- Machines, of j whichthe following is a specifi cation.

This invention relates to machines for damping or wetting fabrics in theweb, and is especially adapted to the damping of such paper webs as areto be printed upon by the wellknown perfecting or web-printing machine.

The principal feature of novelty in the present invention is found inthe arrangement of the inclined guides for the shaft of the wetpaperroll with the driving-cylinder, whereby said roll, when small and light,receives sufficient pressure to produce tight winding by the downwardtraction of the winding-up cylinder, and as the said roll increases insize and weight, and is raised in said guides, the tractional pressuredecreases and its static pressure increases, whereby theamount ofpressure necessary to produce even and tight winding of the wet-roll isconstantly maintained.

Other novel constructions of parts and com.- binations and arrangementsof devices are, however, included in the invention all of which are toofully hereinafter set forth to need preliminary description.

A machine embodying these improvements is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a side elevation Fig. 2, aplan view; Fig. 3, an end elevation, and Fig. 4 a longitudinal sectionalelevation.

As is understood in the use of damping-inachines, the dry web of paperto be damped is in the form of a roll, the same being produced in thepaper mill, where the web is either wound upon a shaft, as 28, whoseends are fitted to receive journal boxes or bearings, and a pulley, as34, or it is wound upon a hollow core which is adapted to receive such ashaft. Such a roll of dry paper is mounted in proper supports at one endof the machine, and is gradually unwound, dampened, and rewound upon asimilar core on a shaft at the other end of the machine.

in the present instance, the supports for the shaft 28 of this dry-rollconsist of two brackets, 31 32, which rise from the bed-plate onopposite sides of the machine. They are provided at their upper endswith sockets adapted to receive the journal boxes or bearings of theshaft 28, and have hinged top plates 64, provided with lockinghasps 65,whereby they maybe opened to receive, and closed to retain, the shaft 28and its boxes or bearings.

The purpose of the pulley 34 is to furnish a medium for controlling therotation of the dryroll by means of a frictional device, which isprovided with a flexible metal band, 35, which bears upon a considerableface of this pulley 34.

This band 35 is attached at one end to a bracket, 36, and at the otherto a bolt, 37,

which is fast to one arm, 38, and plays loosely through the other arm,48, of a U-shaped spring, which swings freely upon a pivot, 66, and thepressure it applies through the band 35 to the pulley 34 is regulated bymeans of a lever, 39, which is pivoted to the bracket 36, and bears atone end (through which the bolt 37 loosely passes) upon the spring-arm48, and near its other end is provided with a pawl, 41, which, takinginto a ratchet, 42, formed in the curved upper surface of said bracket,holds the position of the said lever, and regulates the yieldingpressure applied by it to the spring, and through it tothefriction-brake and dry-roll.

The damping apparatus consists of a wetting roller, 50, whose shaft ismounted in brackets rising from the bedplate, which roller runs in awater-fountain, 49. This wettingroller is revolved through a toothedwheel, 43, on its shaft by means of a pinion, 1, on a shaft, 5, whichlatter also carries a cone-pulley, 45, driven by a belt, 47, from acone-pulley, 46, mounted on one end of the driving-shaft 6. Thisgearing, it is to be observed, is such that the surface of thewetting-roller is moved at a much slower speed than that given to theWeb 33, and a varying speed of the wetting-roller is obtained.

The paper web 33 is led from the dry-ro1l20 over a tension-roller, 27,which is supported at the ends of springs 67 68, and prevented fromvibrating too freely by means of adjustable controlling-bolts 69 69. Itis thence passed portion of the surunder a leading-roller, 26, upwardagainst a bearing-bar, 24, and over a leading-roller, 25, between whichleading-roller and bar 24 it .is stretched against the surface of thewettingminished, as the quality of the paper may require, by increasingor diminishing the speed of said roller, and this is effected throughthe cone-pulleys 46, which drive it. The quantity of water imparted tothe web by the wetting-roller can also be varied to a certain degree bycausing the web to hear more or less upon the surface of saidwetting-roller, and, to accomplish this, the upper leading-roller, 25,is arranged by means of the regulating-screw 9 so as to be adjustable inits position relative to the wetting-roller 50, and its shaft isjournaled at either end in arms 21, which are fast upon the shaft 8; andthe said roller is, by mechanism herein after to be described, broughtat the proper time into the desired position of inclination with respectto the wetting-roller and secured there by means of a slotted arm, 3,projecting from the side frame, in which plays the shank of theclamp-screw 9, which extends through one of the arms 21.

The driving-cylinder 40, over whose surface the web passes onto thewinding-up shaft 29, which latter, together with the wet roll of paperaccumulated upon its surface, is driven by frictional contact with saiddriving-cylinder, is mounted upon the driving-shaft 6, which is suppliedwith fast and loose belt-pulleys 51 52, as is common.

The wet-roll or winding-up shaft 29 may be furnished with a hollow coreof wood or iron, as is common, and is supported in inclined guides 2223, which are sustained on either side of the machine by brackets 62 63rising from the bed-plate, and are placed at an angle less thanforty-five degrees to a tangent to the circumference of thedriving-cylinder at a point where the winding-up shaft (or core carriedthereby) touches the latter. These guides are preferably provided withgrooves 12 13, in which the ends of the winding-up shaft 29, or boxesmounted upon the same, are supported, the said shaft being thus renderedcapable of rising and falling or sliding freely up and down therein.When placed therein, this shaft will descend until the surface of itscore comes into contact with the periphery of the driving-cylin der 40,which is so placed that it permits the said core, when naked, to lienear the bottom ends of the grooves in the inclined guides, and thus besupported by the shaft 29, resting against the rear walls of saidgrooves, or directly against the guides 22 23, and the core against theperiphery of said cylinder. This core is provided with any of thewell-known means for fastening the leading end of the web to it, such asa clamping-rod; or it may be pasted thereto and in order that the twoends may rise evenly up the inclined guides, each bracket 62 63 isprovided with a lifting-arm, 17, con trolled by a lever, 18, which armsunderlie the ends of the said shaft 29, and serve to raise either endthereof, as may be desired.

The necessity for thus gently pressing upward or aiding the risingmotion of this winding-up shaft 29 will arise only at the beginnin gofthe windin gup operation, and is caused by the'paper being at timesthicker at one side of the web than at the other, which will, of course,increase the diameter of the web-roll the faster at the thicker side.The effect of this will be to make one end of the shaft 29 rise fasterin the guides than the other, and this will be aggravated by thewedge-shaped space which the wet-roll occupies at the commencement ofthe winding-up operation, and which will tend to make the web windunevenly upon the roll. This isaemedied by slightly raising the lowestend of the shaft until the wet-roll is a few inches in diameter, afterwhich no further aid will be required.

In order to quickly modify or arrest the motion of this machine, thecross-shaft 19 is actuated by a hand-lever, 60, and communicates motionthrough bevel-wheels 2 4, to a rockingshaft, 72, whereby thebelt-shipper 70, at the end of a rock-arm, 71, is vibrated. The shaft 19is also provided with a disk, 57, to which is attached, by means of rods58 59, the ends of a friction-band, 53, which nearly encircles theperiphery of a friction-pulley, 54, fast upon the driving-shaft 6. Thisband 53, which, like that 35, is preferably made of thin metal, andwhich may be shod with wooden strips, is supported in place near itsmiddle portion by a lug, 56, which is fastened to a fixed arm, 55, by aclamp-screw, 10, the arm and lug 56 both being slotted to secure aperfect adjustment.

The result of this arrangement is that when the lever 60 is moved tothrow the drivingbelt 74 partially or entirely off from the fast pulley51, the disk 57 is rotated, to draw the band 53 tightly upon the pulley54, and thus apply a frictional pressure thereto, which will modify orarrest the rotation of the shaft 6 and that of the driving-cylinder 40.These movements but partially made will cause the machine to run slowly,and its speed may thus be regulated when pasters are passing.

When the machine is fully stopped it is ob vious that if the web ofpaper is allowed to remain in contact with the wetting-roller 50, itwill soon become so charged with water at its pointof bearing thereon asto either cause it to tear apart by itsown weight or r by the strainupon it when the machine is again started. The web may be carried awayfrom said wettingroller when the machine is stopped by unloosening theclamp -screw 9, and allowing the upper leading-roller, 25, to drop backfrom the wetting-roller by means of its own weight, whereby the web isre. moved from contact with said wetting-roller.

The shaft 8, which supports the upper leading-roller, 25, is providedwith aroek-arm, 14,

attached to a connecting-rod, 15, which is seated upon a rock-arm, 16,fast upon the rock shaft 19, by means of which devices the movement ofsaid rock-shaft 19 which releases the friction-band 53 ships the drivingbelt onto the fast pulley 51 and starts driving-cylinder 40; also swingsthe leading-roller 25 into a position which carries the web 33 intocontact with the wetting-roller, where it may be secured by theclamp-screw 9, as hereinbefore mentioned; but the position of this rod15 is so regulated by means of the adjusting-nut 11 that thedriving-cylinder will be set in motion and the web commence its run alittle before it is carried into contact with the wettingroller 50. i

The operation of the machine is as follows: The dry-roll 20 having beenplaced in the supporting-brackets 31 32, and the frictional band 35 andthe tension of its controlling spring-arms 38 48 properly regulated byadj usting the lever 39, the end of the web is led over thetension-roller 27, under the lower leading-roller, 26, against thebearing-bar 24, over the upper leading-roller, 25, in contact with thesurface of the driving-cy1inder40, and properly secured to the core onthe winding-up shaft 29; Motion is then applied to the driving-shaft 6by partially shifting the belt 74 onto the fast pulley'51. As themachine begins to move and the belt is shipped entirely onto thispulley, the rock-arm 16 on the shaft 19 acts on the connecting-rod 15,and moves the leading-roller 25 into a position which brings the webinto contact with the wettingroller, where it is secured by theclamp-screw 9. At the commencement of the winding, when the wet-rollshaft and core lie at the bottom of the wedgeshaped space between thedrivin g-cylinder 40 and the inclined guides, the weight of the shaftand core, supplemented by the downward traction of the cylinder,produces a pressure between the core and cylinder equal to many timesthe intrinsic weight of the shaft and core, and this is sufficient tocause the said shaft 29 to rotate, and thus wind the web tightly uponit. The web is thereby drawn from oif the dry-roll, passed through themachine, (being properly dampened in said passage,) and rewound upon thecore on the shaft 29 with the same speed as the surface of saiddriving-cylinder travels.

-As the layers of. paper multiply in number upon this winding-up shaft,and the diameter of the wet roll-30, whose exterior surface constantlyrests upon the periphery of the driving-cylinder, increases, the saidwet-roll will rise up the inclined guides which govern the position ofits shaft 29, mounting higher and higher as its size and weightincrease, and resting upon the periphery of the driving-cylinder 40 at apoint constantlyapproaching nearer and nearer to a position verticallyabove the shaft 6 thereof, the result of which is that when theoperation of winding up the web begins the position of the winding-upshaft 29 is such that the downward traction of the driving-cylinderforces it into the narrow wedgelike space formed between the peripheryof the said cylinder and the rear surface of the grooves 12 13, oragainst the inclined guides 21 22, thereby producing thesurface-pressure necessary to cause it to take up the motion of and berotated by the said driving-cylinder, and as the wet-roll increases insize mounts higher and higher in said inclined guides, and bears on saidcylinder at a point nearer and nearer to a position vertically over theshaft 6, the pressure from traction decreases, and that due to theweight of the wet-roll increases,

whereby a pressure sufficient to produce tight and even windingisexerteddurin g the whole operation, whatever the size of the wet-rollmay be. A l

The inclined guides, preferably formed by the grooves 12 13, as shown,might be simple bearers 22 23, upon the face of which the winding-upshaft 29, friction-rollers, or journalboxes placed upon its ends slides,and which will thereby be supported in all of its positions, itbeingrequisite that said guides or bearers shall be inclined in a tangentialposition with respect to the periphery of the driving-cylinder, wherebythe winding-up shaft or wet-roll, whose position they govern, shall bepressed between said guides or bearers and the periphery of saiddriving-cylinder at the beginning of the winding-up operation, andconstantly move rearward] y away from the cylinder as the winding-upoperation continues and the wet-roll increases.

What is claimed is l. The combination. of the driving-cylinder withguides for the winding-up shaft, which guides are at an angle less thanforty-five degrees to a tangent to the circumference of the cylinder ata point where the winding-up shaft, or core carried thereby, touches thelatter before any winding takes place, so that the paper will be woundtightly, all substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the dry-roll shaft and a frictional deviceadapted to control the unwinding of the web, of the driving-cylinder andguides for the winding-up shaft, which guides are placed at an anglelessthan fortyfive degrees to a tangent to the circumference of the cylinderwhen the winding-up shaft, or core carried thereby, touches the latter,by the co-operation of which devices the web is properly unwound andevenly rewou'ud Whilewetting roller geared to run at a slower speed thanthe said web is moved, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with the winding-up roller 29 and its inclinedguides, of the starting-lever 1.7, substantially as described.

6. The combination of the friction-band 35, two-armed spring 38 48, andcontrolling-lever 39, substantially as described.

7. The combination, with the driving-shaft of the machine and the shaftof the wettingroller, of cone-pulleys, whereby the speed of thewetting-roller may be raised while that of the web remains unchanged,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification inthepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

STEPHEN D. TUCKER.

Witnesses JOHN H. LooKWooD, OHAs. W. CARPENTER.

